The Master Chief
"Chief told me once that no soldier should be honored for doing what's expected." - LT. Niraj Shah Skills and Abilities John-117 has endured the extensive program of physical operations demanded of all Spartan-II candidates. This list of advanced physical augmentations include grafting ceramics onto their skeletal structures in order to make their bones nearly unbreakable, muscular enhancement, accelerated growth spurts, catalytic thyroid implants, occipital capillary reversal, and superconducting fabrication of neural dendrites to increase their reflexes by over 300 percent. Another key feature of Master Chief's prowess is the iconic green armor he wears codenamed MJOLNIR Mk. VI. This advanced exoskeleton suit contains the processing power of a starship and its physical enhancements allow its wearer to lift two-tons and run well over 20 miles (32 kilometers) per hour. Personality A superb tactician accustomed to leading a team, Master Chief holds high regards for his brothers at arms and does not consider himself to be superior. As a leader, Master Chief has demonstrated a great respect for life and a tendency to avoid any unnecessary casualties if he can avoid it. The Chief often believes that his actions are working towards a greater good and has often shown signs of being aloof from social situations - when not actively fighting, John is always preparing for the next mission whilst always processing his emotions in a tactical manner that will not influence the outcome of a mission. Simply put, if he does not have the time to think about it, he will not think about it. To the Riftguard he is a trusted leader, always one step ahead of the pack, to be respected and emulated. To the common soldier or officer he is like a valkyrie, a mysterious and inspiring savior when death seems close at hand. To civilians he is like a Titan coming to the rescue; he is going to save you from the monsters but his power may destroy your neighborhood in the process. To his enemies, he is a Demon, capable of untold horror. History Early Life During the rebellion on Eridanus II in 2511 CE, a boy by the name of John was born in Elysium City. He lived six years of his childhood on one of the most hotly contested planets in human space. This early life made John into a competitive child obsessed with winning at all costs. John's genetic markers and aggressive competitiveness brought him to the attention of Dr. Catherine Halsey, who had the boy abducted and conscripted into the SPARTAN-II Program. Little is known about John's family, but there are indications that he was the child of loving parents and would have found the sudden change in his environment - the absence of family, an d complete vacuum where love used to be - quite traumatic. John was placed among a class of 75 six-year-old SPARTAN-II candidates who were subjected to a regimen of intense physical and mental training, combined with biological enhancements. The children were manipulated by their handlers to transform their affection and longing for their families into a powerful bond with their fellow SPARTAN-II's. Their need for parental authority was given over to their superior officers. Initially, John's obsession with winning kept him from acting well within the framework of a team, but he soon realized how he could apply his innate leadership qualities to a group of people in order for them all to excel together. After grafting this mindset to his approach during training exercises, it was not long before he was made into squad leader. During the years that followed, the SPARTAN-II's were trained in tactics, strategy, and improvisation on the battlefield. Most importantly, they were placed in simulation missions that strained their physical and mental limits. John-117 became extremely close to his compatriots: Kelly-087, the fastest Spartan; Linda-058, an extremely gifted sniper; Samuel-034, a giant of a man and John's closest friend; and Fred-104, who consistently (and very purposefully) placed second in all tests. John thought Fred chose to be second and that if he truly wanted to, he could rival John's skills across the board. One thing that Fred lacked, however, was John's exceptional luck: a variable that could not be tested for but followed him throughout his entire life. At age 14, SPARTAN-IIs were deemed ready for the next step in their preparation as super-soldiers: advanced augmentation. This test was one through which John-117 could not lead his soldiers. The only way for candidates to win this battle was to survive. Spartan career pre-Halo A small team l ed by John-117 was sent to the asteroid belt of the Eridanus to capture Colonel Robert Watts. The SPARTAN program was initially created to combat civil resistance between the human colonies, and in this first mission, the Blue Team of Spartans proved their effectiveness beyond the shadow of a doubt by capturing their target and disabling the entire base of rebel operations. The Spartan's indoctrination kept them from questioning their orders, or even considering the possibility that Watts and his followers had a legitimate reason for their rebellion. Questions of morality regarding using enhanced humans against other humans quickly became academic when the Covenant, a hostile alien force, appeared and began their campaign to eradicate the human race. Over the following years, John-117 took on the rank of Master Chief and led Blue Team on many engagements throughout human space. John always succeeded in his various missions and helped to win many battles, bu humanity was steadily losing ground against the advancing Covenant armadas. Immediately after the SPARTAN-IIs were outfitted with their new armor, a Covenant ship chanced upon their location. The Spartan Blue Team, led by the Master-Chief, boarded and destroyed the Covenant ship. In the process, the airtight seal in Samuel-034's armor was ruptured, forcing him to stay behind to die as the ship exploded. This was the first casualty in action that John-117 experienced, and it weighs heavily on him. He learne d that he might be responsible for the lives of the men and women he served with and he resolved he would not spend any of their lives in vain. In 2547 CE, to improve humanity's morale, ONI took the SPARTAN-II program public, though the parallel SPARTAN-III program remained classified. The Master Chief and the other Spartans quickly achieved near-mythical status among the men and women of the UNSC. While many soldiers did not believe that Spartans existed until they saw one with their own eyes, a Spartan's presence never failed to inspire troops. After intercepting a set of coordinates sent from a Forerunner artifact on Sigma Octanus-IV, Dr. Halsey decided to move forward with the next step of Spartan evolution. Using a cloned copy of her own brain, she created Cortana, the most advanced Artificial Intelligence constructed ever designed. Cortana was assigned to a covert mission to infiltrate Covenant space in the armor of a Spartan. She was given her choice of SPARTAN-II's and she chose John-117, who had always been Dr. Halsey's favorite - his luck and ambition reminding her, in many ways, of herself. Before their mission could commence, a Covenant armada appeared en route to Reach, the base of military operations for the UNSC. All SPARTAN-IIs were recalled to Reach except for the Grey Team, which was too far away to return in time. The SPARTAN-II's fought valiantly in space and on the ground, but Reach fell and all of the Spartans were presumed lost. By a twist of fate, or dint of his consistent luck, the Master Chief escaped the Fall of Reach on the Pillar of Autumn and arrived at the Halo construct, Installation 04. Installation 04 As usual, the Master Chief was forced into immediate action, making it impossible for him to truly face the loss of his comrades on Reach. He was given the assignment of protecting Cortana and keeping her knowledge of Earth's location a secret. With Cortana installed in his armor, he experienced a direct and unexpected intimacy with her. Cortana was an openly emotional construct and expressed herself in ways he could never have allowed himself to. Also, as his superior officer, Cortana enabled him to immediately follow up on hunches and instincts, giving him a sense of autonomy that he had never before experienced. Together they were able to infiltrate the Halo installation, which could destroy all life in the galaxy while also confronting the greatest physical threat humanity had ever faced - the Flood. After destroying the Halo known as Installation 04, Master Chief managed to escape with a small group of survivors and the injured, cryogenically frozen Spartan, Linda-058. Eventually they were reunited with the remaining members of Red Team who had survived the groundside engagements of Reach. The covenant had become more chaotic and reckless when Halo was destroyed, and after many years of searching, they had finally discovered the location of Earth. Installation 05 The Master Chief and Cortana led UNSC forces against the Covenant on Earth and later onto Installation 05. There, the Master Chief, faced off against the Covenant's Arbiter and the Flood's Gravemind. With the revelation of the Halo rings' purpose and the Prophets' deceit, the [Arbiter and the Sangheili rebelled against the Covenant, ultimately helping to thwart Tartarus' attempt to fire Installation 05. The Master Chief and Cortana were transported to High Charity in order to stop the High Prophets from activating the Halo Array. There, Cortana chose to stay behind to stop the Flood's spread, but she was captured by that very same Flood. Truly alone for the first time, the Master Chief returned to Earth. He followed Truth across Africa and through a portal near New Mombasa leading to the Forerunner Ark, Installation 00. There, the Master Chief and the Arbiter defeated the High Prophet of Truth and prevented the firing of the Halo Array - only to face the Gravemind after it crashed the infested High Charity onto the Ark. Master Chief fought his way into the belly of the ship to rescue the captured Cortana. This impulsive act revealed his commitment to her, and while their reunion was tender, he used humor to mask his deeper emotions. With this facade, they fought their way out of the Ark together and discovered a partially built replacement for Halo installation 04. During the destruction of this new installation and thus the Ark, the splispace portal created by the Chief's ship collapsed, severing the ship in two. Missing In Action The fore half of the ship, with the Arbiter, arrived back on Earth, while the aft section, with Cortana and Master Chief was sent to parts unknown. They had survived the war only to be lost in space, and Chief was placed into deep freeze to preserve his lifespan, with Cortana watching over him. On Earth, among the Covenant rebel fleets, John-117 is eulogized as a hero. Monuments are erected in his honor and while many believe him dead, others continue to search for him even decades after his disappearance. For according to legend, Spartans never die. Relationship Guide *(Character) - Friend *(Character) - Lover *(Character) - Enemy Feel free to add more complex types of relationship or go into detail about specific relationships if it pleases you.